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Your Weekly ASUO Boondoggle

I had to leave the Senate meeting early tonight. Well, not early. I’d already been sitting in the boardroom for three hours, and the Senate was not even halfway through the agenda. Besides a brief appearance by Zach Vishanoff, it was a joyless headache of an affair. But on to the real news …

As I previously mentioned, the ASUO Senate had $196,000 in over-realized requests to approve or disapprove. Part of the money was rollover from last year, and the rest was the allocated money from the denied BWA and CASL proposals. If the BWA money is not spent tonight, it will most likely roll into the general fund, meaning students would see nothing for it. There is also a chance that the CASL money will roll into the G-fund if not spent.

Unlike most of the time when the Senate gets to throw money around, though, they weren’t happy about it. The over-realized requests were put together by the ASUO Executive and the Summer Senate, and they tried to include as broad a swath of student programs as they could. However, many on the Senate objected to the nature of the requests because many groups were gone over the summer. They complained that there wasn’t “equality of access.”

Senator Gower loudly proclaimed that “the ends didn’t justify the means” and stated that he would vote no on every request. Yeah, he wasn’t objecting to the money being spent; he objected to the fact that not every group got a crack at it.

It took about an hour of discussion about the nuts and bolts of the request package before the Senate finally moved on to the actual requests. Some on the Senate didn’t seem to quite understand relationship between the University Administration and the ASUO. One little tyke (Senator Perley, I believe) said he was ready to take on the University General Counsel if necessary. Good luck with that, champ. Melinda Grier will eat you alive.

The Veterans and Family Student Association request for a satellite communications system ($5,408) passed 14-1-1. The system will allow friends and family of troops stationed overseas to communicate. Next up was Alpha Phi Omega, who was requesting money to send seven students to the national APO convention. There was about an hour of discussion regarding the request, specifically about the $20 per diem food budget for every member. And then the Senate passed it 11-2-3 anyways.

There were still 12 more requests to go (and new business, an executive appointee and committee updates). It was ten o’clock. At this point someone finally had the brilliant idea to put a two minute speaking limit in effect. I left.

At one point, former senator Diego Hernandez, who was sitting next to me (and, unfortunately for him, last in line for requests), whispered in my ear, “This thing’ll go faster once they get over their power trips.”

  1. Vincent says:

    Oh, knock it off.

  2. Concerned Student says:

    Gower you have shit for brains

  3. Lee says:

    Well that became a rather entertaining thread before it was all said and done…

  4. Truth says:

    Gower…..you ain’t gettin shit

  5. Concerned Student says:

    Shut up gower you pansy. You voted against everything but Greek Life because you were scared Geoff was gonna headbut you in the nose again. You are a joke to your house, Greek Life, the Senate, and the entire student body. Go with Crampton and watch some more Ronald Reagan videos you scumbag

  6. Gower says:

    Actually, I abstained from Greek Life and the DPS proposals after consultation with other senators. Abstention was appropriate given my involvement with Greek Life and the Office of Student Conduct and Community standards.

    I find it faltering that someone would like to pose as me on discussion boards, but highly immature nevertheless.

  7. nick gower says:

    This article really miscategorized my position. I voted no on everything except Greek life because I am in Greek life. The rest of the proposals were unfair because president Dotters-Katz told his buddies to apply and didn’t tell who he didn’t like. He doesn’t care about student unions he just gives them money so they will leave him alone. I voted against all this nonsence and I am dissapointed the rest of senate didn’t do the same. The young senate proved that they are too scared to stand up to Sam, extreme cowardise all in all. And that is all I have to say on the matter.

  8. human nature says:

    8.5 hours later . . . every over-realized request was granted (albeit with a few reductions in the amount granted)

  9. Cheerio says:

    Where was this Senate meeting held?

  10. Timothy says:

    Good luck with that, champ. Melinda Grier will eat you alive.

    This is true, she feeds off the flesh of the living. Of course, if you can lose a battle of wits with Melinda Grier you’re probably carrying an extra chromosome or three around…sooo….

  11. Michelle Haley says:

    It’s Senator Perley.

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